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Hill Valley
, some things never change. The hovering "WELCOME TO HILL VALLEY" greeting sign in 2015. The name of Hill Valley's mayor, Goldie Wilson Jr., is displayed below that of the town.]] Hill Valley, California, was the hometown of the McFly family, the Brown family, the Tannen family, as well as several thousands more including the Strickland family. History Early settlement The town of Hill Valley was first settled in 1850 and was incorporated in 1865. By the 1880s, it was connected by railroad to San Francisco. Construction of a new county courthouse was well underway in 1885, the year a new clock was dedicated for the building. The Shonash Ravine Bridge was completed in the Summer of 1886, around the same time the ravine was renamed the Eastwood Ravine Bridge (or Clayton Ravine Bridge, depending upon which timeline one focuses upon). Rise and fall of town square The area around the courthouse was developed in the following seventy years and by the 1950s had become the downtown of Hill Valley. A grass-covered town square was built in front of the courthouse, while stores, theatres and cafés opened on the surrounding streets. On Saturday, November 12 1955, at 10:04 p.m. PST, lightning struck the courthouse's clock tower, freezing the clock at 10:04. The clock was never repaired and as it became a landmark of Hill Valley over the years, it was preserved in its non-functional state by the Hill Valley Preservation Society. By a few decades later, many of the town square businesses had moved or closed down. The new businesses which replaced them included a second-hand shop and an adult book store. The courthouse fell into a state of disrepair, while at night at least one homeless person slept on the town square park benches. To accommodate the growing need for parking space, the grassy park outside of the courthouse was converted into a parking lot. What happened to everybody's home town is obviously the same thing. They built the mall out in the boonies, and killed all the business downtown, and everything changed. By the 21st century, the downtown area had experienced a revival as the courthouse was converted into the Courthouse Mall. Businesses began to move back into and around the town square and the parking lot was converted into a pond. The clock on top of the courthouse was still preserved at 10:04 due to the continuous efforts of the Hill Valley Preservation Society. "WELCOME TO HILL VALLEY" greeting signs are seen in 1955 and 2015. Both greeting signs bear the motto A Nice Place To Live, and have symbols representing the Rotary, Kiwanis and Lions clubs. In addition, the 1955 sign has the logos of the Hill Valley Chamber of Commerce, YMCA, United States Junior Chamber, Camp Fire, American Legion Auxilary, the National Grange of the Order of Patrons of Husbandry, Optimist International, and National FFA Organization while the 2015 sign has those of Crime Stoppers USA, 4-H and three other currently unidentified logos. The 1955 and 2015 greeting signs bore reminders of "PLEASE DRIVE CAREFULLY!" and "PLEASE FLY CAREFULLY / EJECTION SEATS SAVE LIVES" respectively. It would appear that in 2015 the greeting signs of towns and cities also bore the name of their mayor, as that of Hill Valley displayed below the town's name the wording "GOLDIE WILSON jr. / MAYOR". A greeting sign was also seen in 1985A, which had been defaced by spray paint and had the letter 'I' in the word "HILL" crudely altered to read "Welcome to the City of H'E'''LL VALLEY" instead, as well as having been knocked to the ground and riddled with bullet holes. This greeting sign retained the motto ''A NICE PLACE TO LIVE (in block capitals, as here), albeit partly obscured by spray paint, but did not have any club or organization symbols. 1985A Due to the influence of the powerful and corrupt Biff Tannen, gambling was legalized in 1979. Tannen's toxic waste reclamation plants were built downtown, polluting the air and leading to pollution alerts to be issued. Tannen also bought off the police. Consequently, crime increased and biker gangs settled in the city. Hill Valley's public school burned down and the courthouse was converted into Biff Tannen's Pleasure Paradise Casino & Hotel. There are also more "adult entertainment" places than in the main downtown Hill Valley. Location Hill Valley was located in Northern California, 12 miles east of Grass Valley, and with railway links to San Francisco. U.S. Route 395 passed through Hill Valley with a directional route shield posted in Courthouse Square. The town was nestled in rolling foothills, with an apparently temperate, albeit semi-arid climate, and, although there was a desert within walking distance of the town, the nearby lake froze over in the winter. The signs in Hill Valley also indicate that U.S. Route 8 can be reached from downtown, although that route is in Wisconsin. On the other hand, U.S. Route 395 and U.S. Route 6 intersect in Inyo County, California, near the town of Bishop, the Sierra Nevada Mountains, and the Death Valley desert. Recurring places Many family businesses are passed down from generation to generation in Hill Valley. As a result, the city changes but remains similar from one generation to the next, as businesses are updated but rarely change. The following is a list of such places. 1885 Some buildings shown in 1885 scenes are actually located further down the street in an area not shown in the first 2 movies. # Hill Valley Courthouse & Clock Tower (under construction) # Nothing # Nothing # Honest Joe Statler's Fine Horses (in different location this spot actually empty) # Wells Fargo # Nothing # Building under construction # Nothing # Nothing # Nothing # Nothing # Unknown # Unknown # Marshal's office # Palace Saloon # Unknown # Unknown # Unknown # Livery Stable # Building under construction # Hill Valley Telegraph # A. Jones Manure Handling # Unknown # Nothing # Nothing # Sheriff # Hill Valley School # Nothing 1931 #Hill Valley Courthouse #Hill Valley High School 1955 # Hill Valley Courthouse # Town Theater # Holt's Diner # Statler Studebaker # Ruth's Frock Shop # Jacobson & Field, Attorneys at Law # Western Auto Stores # Bluebird Motel # Elite Barber Shop # Hill Valley Stationers # Zale's Jewelers # J.D. Armstrong Realty # Ask Mr. Foster Travel Service # Bank of America # Lou's Cafe # Roy's Records # Texaco full-service station # Hal's Bike Shop # Lawrence Building # Essex Theater (as a mainstream movie house) # Hill Valley Telegraph # D. Jones Manure Handling # Twin Pines Ranch # Lyon Estates (under development) # Nothing # Hill Valley Police Department # Hill Valley High School # Pohatchee Drive-In theater 1985 # Hill Valley Courthouse - Department of Social Services # Town Theater (as a church) # Elmo's Ribs # Statler Toyota # Goodwill Industries # Empty (entrance now barred up) # Empty Store (Displaying Re-Elect Mayor Goldie Wilson Signage) # Empty Store (formally Motel now displaying "Out of Business" Sign) # Empty Store (Sign on window saying "We Moved to Twin Pines Mall") # Cupid's Adult Book Store # Abrams Brokerage Corporation # Loans # Ask Mr. Foster Travel Service # Bank of America # Lou's Fitness Aerobics Center (Originally Lou's Cafe in 1955) # The Third Eye # Texaco gas station # Hog Heaven # Broadway Florist # Essex Theater (as an adult movie house showing "Orgy, American Style") # Hill Valley Telegraph # Unknown # Twin Pines Mall (becomes Lone Pine Mall after Marty knocks down one of the two tree in 1955) # Lyon Estates # Hilldale (under development) # Hill Valley Police Department # Hill Valley High School # Unknown Alternate 1985 # Biff Tannen's Pleasure Paradise Casino & Hotel (where the courthouse was once standing) # BiffCo Toxic Waste Reclamation Plant # DeeDee's Delight BAR # Adult Toys # Tanya Erotic Sex Goddess # Bad Rap Bail Bonds # SAGE # Video Nude Hardcore Movies # Unknown # Hell Hole XXX # Unknown # Unknown # Unknown # Naughty XXX # Unknown # Unknown # Unknown # Unknown # Unknown # Hill Valley Theater of Live Sex Acts # Unknown (Hill Valley Telegraph still in operation but most likely in a new location) # Unknown # Unknown # Lyon Estates # Unknown # Hill Valley Police Department (owned by Biff) # Hill Valley High School (burned down 6 years earlier) # Unknown 1986 *Valley Video 1986B *Soup Mo 2015 # Hill Valley Courthouse Mall # Hill Valley Museum of Art : A Bellman retrospective # Fusion Bar # Statler Pontiac Sales and Hover Conversions # Hill Valley Gifts # Simulex # Sight Sound and Mind # Mr. Perfect All Natural Steroids # Flying High Kite Store # Eclipse]] - Contemporary & Traditional Lighting Store # Pizza Hut # True Blues # Uniglobe Travel # Hill Valley Transit (Second floor advertising Goldie Wilson III Hover Conversions) # Cafe 80's # Blast from the Past Antique Store # 7-Eleven (first floor) and Texaco automated Havoline station (second floor) # The Bot Shoppe # Hill Valley Surrogate Parenting Center # Holomax Theater # Unknown (building displaying Skyway Information) # Unknown # Unknown # Unknown # Hilldale # Hill Valley Police Department # Hill Valley Remedial School # Unknown Unique places Despite Hill Valley's notable consistency, many businesses do appear and disappear over the years, as their services begin being needed or become obsolete. The following is a list of businesses that have no known equivalent in other time periods. 1885 *Wells Fargo *Barber *Marshal's office *General Mercantile *Doctor *Gunsmith *Bath House *Dress Maker *Hill Valley Telegraph *Hill Valley Station *Undertaking *Cabinet Maker *Meat Market 1955 *Hill Valley Stationers *Armstrong Realty *Louis Watch Maker *Roy's Records *Elite Barber Shop *Bluebird Motel *Zale's *Bank of America *Western Auto *Schwinn Bicycle Company *Western Union 1985 *Department of Social Services *Cupid's Adult Book Store *Goodwill Industries *Bank of America *The Third Eye *Hog Heaven *Broadway Florist *Burger King *Toys "R" Us *Ross Dress For Less (In the mall) *JCPenney (in the mall) *J.W. Robinson's (in the mall) *Fox Photo (mall parking lot) *Biff's Auto Detailing (after Marty returns to 1985) *Zale's (in the mall) sign 1985A *BiffCo Realty 2015 *Blast from the Past *Simulex *Pizza Hut *True Blues *Eclipse Jewelers *Flying High *Hill Valley Surrogate Parenting Center *Bottoms Up: A Plastic Surgery Franchise *The Bot Shoppe *Mr. Perfect All Natural Steroids *Luxor Taxi Cab Co. *Hill Valley Transit *Hill Valley Gifts *Hyatas Japanese Market Behind the scenes In addition to the main plot, the films contain many sight gags, verbal innuendos and detailed set design elements, from which a detailed and consistent history and geography of the area can be derived. The name Hill Valley is itself a joke, being an oxymoron, or contradiction in terms. Shooting locations For Back to the Future, the producers considered filming the town square scenes in the real city of Petaluma, California, but soon realized it would be prohibitively expensive and impractical to alter a real place to suit the different eras. Instead they filmed it on the Universal Studios backlot, where they had more control.Robert Zemeckis and Bob Gale, Q&A, Back to the Future DVD, recorded at the University of Southern California The main location, known as Courthouse Square, already existed and had been previously used for many films and television shows. The Hill Valley courthouse can also be found in the movies Bruce Almighty, Gremlins, Sneakers, The Offspring's music video "Why Don't You Get a Job?" and even in an episode of Buffy The Vampire Slayer. The clock tower itself, however, was a removable addition to the existing Courthouse building, one of many ways in which the structure has been redressed over the years to suit the needs of a production. Prior to Back to the Future, the backlot location was called Mockingbird Square, a reference to the 1962 film To Kill a Mockingbird. * The Universal Studios Backlot location: google maps, Live Local Many of the cars that appear in the 2015 scenes are either modified for the film or concept cars. Examples include Ford Probe, Saab EV-1, Citroën DS 21, Pontiac Banshee Concept and Pontiac Fiero. Cars reused from other science fiction films include the "Star Car" from The Last Starfighter (1984) and a "Spinner" from Blade Runner (1982). Griff's car is a modified BMW convertible. For Back to the Future Part III, Hill Valley 1885 was filmed in Sonora, California. The producers were able to use the land rent free as long as they left the buildings there. They agreed to leave everything except the Clock Tower. Interestingly, on August 10, 1996, a lightning bolt struck the town and it burned down. An arson fire on the Universal Studios Hollywood backlot on November 6, 1990 had previously destroyed much of Courthouse Square, the setting in which all the other time periods were filmed. However, the Courthouse itself survived the devastation. Another backlot fire on September 6, 1997 again damaged Courthouse Square. In both cases, the backlot facades were then rebuilt. The Sonora location was not rebuilt. In addition, a February 14, 1999 fire at Whittier High School, where some (mostly exterior) scenes were filmed , destroyed the old men's gym there. Other real-life shooting locations of Hill Valley landmarks include the following: * Doc's house in 1955 is the Gamble House in Pasadena, California. * Twin Pines Mall is actually the Puente Hills Mall, located in Industry, California. * Marty's Lyon Estates house in 1985 is actually in Roslyndale, California. * Peabody's Twin Pines Ranch is really at Golden Oaks Ranch, which is owned by The Walt Disney Company and used in many Disney productions. * The houses of George McFly and Lorraine Baines in 1955 are both in South Pasadena, California. See also Category:Filming locations Appearances *''Back to the Future trilogy'' *''Back to the Future novelizations'' *''Back to the Future: The Pinball'' *''Back to the Future: The Animated Series'' *''Back to the Future comic series'' *''Back to the Future: The Game '' See also *List of Hill Valley streets References Category:Locations Category:1876 Category:1885 Category:1931 Category:1955 Category:1985 Category:1985A Category:1986 Category:1986A Category:1986B Category:2015